Mass Transport Deposits Research Articles

An investigation of subaqueous failures triggered by the 1935 CE Mw 6.1 Témiscaming earthquake, Quebec, Canada, as an analogue for a paleoseismic study

Subaqueous mass transport deposits (MTDs) attributed to the Mw 6.1 1935 CE Témiscaming earthquake were mapped at 17 sub-bottom acoustic profile survey areas on 11 lakes near Témiscaming, Quebec. Distributed over about 1270 km2, MTDs are the product of shallow failures, up to several metres thick, that occurred along planar surfaces and involved primarily lacustrine sediments. Core samples of unfailed deposits indicate that the failure planes occurred within soft sediments at the top of a glaciolacustrine unit or at the base of overlying lacustrine deposits. Radioisotope dating of sediment samples from six coring sites on Tee and Kipawa lakes confirm that the MTDs are the product of failures triggered by the 1935 CE earthquake. To assess the application of such a mapping study to a paleoseismic investigation, the minimum magnitude of an earthquake that can generate an MTD distribution of 1270 km2 was extrapolated from a published empirical plot. The resulting magnitude of Mw/Ms 5.7-5.8 is less than the instrumental Mw 6.1 magnitude and deemed a reasonable estimation of minimum earthquake magnitude. The distribution of MTDs triggered by the 1935 CE earthquake forms the only such signature within the Témiscaming study area since roughly 8 ka cal BP. The lack of an analogous, older signature(s) is consistent with the absence of equivalent shaking to the 1935 CE earthquake over this period, but the actual timespan may be shorter and begin when gyttja deposits on slopes became thick enough to be prone to failure from such an event.

Application of modern seismic attributes in the characterisation of mass transport deposits: Orange Basin, South Africa

Abstract The southern Orange Basin is structurally complex, with a tectonic history dating back to the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous. Mass movement events triggered by gravity and tectonic activities have resulted in the deposition of mass transport deposits (MTDs) on the seafloor. These MTDs have been documented as contributors to geohazards, posing risks to underwater infrastructure. Evidence of MTDs has been observed in 3D seismic surveys in the southern portion of the Orange Basin. However, limited studies have explored the geomorphological expression of MTDs using seismic attributes to delineate their shape, size, and anatomy in this region. The MTDs in the study area exhibit features such as basal shear surfaces (BSS), grooves, ramps, and striations. Four distinct mass transport packages were interpreted, primarily within the extensional regime, in the study area. These MTDs, spanning the Neogene to Coniacian periods, have thicknesses ranging from 300 m to 500 m. The MTDs are generally chaotic with semitransparent reflections. MTD D, being the largest, exhibits a maximum thickness of about 500 m and extends approximately 30 km in width.

New Heat Flow Measurements Offshore Montserrat: Advective Heat Flow Detected via MeBo Borehole Temperature Logging

AbstractNew heat flow measurements collected at the Lesser Antilles Arc using a Hybrid Lister‐Outrigger probe and a new logging‐while‐tripping MeBo70 drilling approach provide the first high‐resolution (meter‐to‐cm‐scale) temperature‐depth measurements across the Lesser Antilles volcanic arc and offer new insight into heat and fluid transfer at a convergent oceanic margins. At multiple sites where logging‐while‐tripping MeBo temperature measurements were made, temperature increases linearly with depth in shallowly buried hemipelagic sediment but is isothermal or significantly hotter in deeper, courser‐grained sediments associated with mass flows. We interpret these isothermal zones as regions where advective heat flow—perhaps caused by convection or pressure‐driven advection—dominates. The implication is that apparently conductive heat flow regimes observed in the shallowest upper 5–10 m of hemipelagic sediment across the Lesser Antilles Arc measured using standard lister‐type probes may often unknowingly be influenced by deeper, advective flow along buried mass transport deposits at this site. Since mass transport deposits are ubiquitous on convergent margins, higher permeability mass transport deposits may play a fundamental and previously unrecognized role in fluid and heat transport.

Post-glacial stratigraphy and late Holocene record of great Cascadia earthquakes in Ozette Lake, Washington, USA

Ozette Lake is an ~100-m-deep coastal lake located along the outer coast of the Olympic Peninsula (Washington, USA); it is situated above the locked portion of the northern Cascadia megathrust but also relatively isolated from active crustal faults and intraslab earthquakes. Here we present a suite of geophysical and geological evidence for earthquake-triggered mass transport deposits (MTDs) and related turbidite deposition in Ozette Lake since ca. 14 ka. Comprehensive high-resolution bathymetry data, seismic reflection profiles, and sediment cores are used to characterize the post-glacial stratigraphic framework and examine paleoseismic evidence in the lacustrine sediments. Stacked sequences of MTDs along the steep eastern flanks of the lake appear to grade basin-ward from thick, chaotic, blocky masses to thin, parallel-bedded turbidite beds. The discrete turbidite event layers are separated by fine-grained (silt and clay) lake sedimentation. The event layers are observed throughout the lake, but the physical characteristics of the deposits vary considerably depending on proximity to primary depocenters, steep slopes, and subaqueous deltas. A total of 30–34 event deposits are observed in the post-glacial record. Radiometric dating was used to reconstruct a detailed sedimentation history over the last ~5.5 k.y., develop an age model, and estimate the recurrence (365–405 yr) for the most recent 12 event layers. Based on sedimentological characteristics, temporal overlap with other regional paleoseismic chronologies, and recurrence estimates, at least 10 of the dated event layers appear to be sourced from slope failures triggered by intense shaking during megathrust ruptures; the recurrence interval for these 10 events is 440–560 yr. Thus, Ozette Lake contains one of the longest and most robust geological records of repeated shaking along the northern Cascadia subduction zone.

Investigating relationships between shoreline process regime, shelf-margin architecture, and deep-water sand delivery: Insights from the early post-rift Hammerhead shelf margin (Bight Basin, southern Australia)

Shelf margins represent a crucial area along source-to-sink systems where sediments are partitioned from the shelf to slope and basin-floor areas. Reconstructing the evolution of these depositional systems is key for interpreting the interplay between past accommodation and sediment supply, and sediment dispersal mechanisms into deep water. In the Bight Basin, on the southern margin of Australia, the Hammerhead shelf margin prograded during the Late Cretaceous following break-up between Australia and Antarctica. This understudied interval offers important insights into source-to-sink processes in a post-rift, greenhouse, high sediment supply setting. A dynamic stratigraphic approach using high-resolution 3D seismic data across the Hammerhead shelf margin has been used to quantitatively characterise 28 clinothems developed over ∼ 1.9 Myrs each with an average duration of ∼ 67,000 years. By applying a shallow-marine process-based classification to shorelines, alongside quantitative analysis of the architecture of their coeval deep-water deposits downdip, statistical relationships and clear links between shallow-marine processes, stratigraphic architecture, and deep-water sand delivery are revealed. A statistically significant relationship between fluvial dominated shorelines, high slope gradients, and mass-transport deposit development is demonstrated, as is a requirement for fluvial influence at the shoreline for the initiation of long run-out turbidite systems. These long run-out turbidite systems are interpreted to have been formed by repeated density flows which lead to greater sediment transfer efficiency and increased sediment supply. This research has direct application to improve prediction of reservoir locations within the Bight Basin for resource exploration and/or carbon sequestration and may also be applied to improve deep-water sediment predictability in other basins worldwide developed in similar tectonic and climatic settings.

Late Cenozoic mass transport deposits in the offshore Tanzania continental margin

Sediment mass movements and their associated Mass Transport Deposits (MTDs) have been widely studied due to their economic and geohazard potentials. This study combines 2D and 3D seismic reflection data with a seismic facies approach and attribute analysis to reveal the presence and distribution of different MTDs in the southernmost region offshore Tanzania. Results of seismic facies analysis show that the study area contains different Late Cenozoic MTDs. The MTDs have limited petroleum reservoir potential and include slides, slumps, debris flow deposits and occasional turbidites. The formation of these MTDs was caused by tectonic events associated with the development of the East African Rift System. Seismic attribute maps have shown the locations of channels, remnant blocks, headwall scars, and grooves confirming downslope sediment mass mobilization. The seabed attribute maps have shown areas where recent mass mobilizations were initiated. Some of these areas coincide with faults which have dissected the seabed, forming potential future gravity failure sites. Other future gravity failure sites include channel banks and slope edges, which may be present over the whole Tanzania continental margin. Sediment mass movements may be catastrophic, and therefore future infrastructure installations in the area must involve detailed mapping of the seabed to assess geohazard risks and act accordingly.

Ponding and compartmentalization of a giant Paleogene slope fan by mass transport complexes, offshore Newfoundland, Canada

The Ephesus fan is a giant channel-lobe complex that extends across 460 km2 in the lower structured slope of the West Orphan Basin, offshore Newfoundland, Canada. Based on biostratigraphic dating of offset wells, the fan was likely deposited during the Oligocene. High resolution 3D seismic data reveal that the fan overlies a succession of mass transport deposits that initially created a flatter topographic surface, with later slumping events building elongated ridges. Subsequent high density turbidity currents coursed into the area through a single feeder channel, depositing as lobes onto the flatter area via a network of distributary channels. The lobes were circumferentially ponded and internally compartmentalized by the slump ridges, and the ponding forced the fan to assume its unique, 46 km-wide shape. Distributary channels were initially directed to the south side of the fan, due to the higher relief of the mass transport deposits to the north. After the infill of the accommodation space to the south, subsequent sediment input levelled the remaining rugose topography, and some distributary channels were able to avulse north. Throughout deposition of the fan, distributary channels also continued down-dip from the lobe complex, indicating some sediment bypass continuing down the lower slope. Overlying laminated mudrock displays pervasive polygonal faulting, signaling dewatering processes and the end of deposition by muddy submarine landslides and high density turbidity currents.

Slide Stacking: A new mechanism to repeat stratigraphic sequences during gravity-driven extension

Gravity-driven sliding of sediments down subaqueous slopes results in mass transport deposits (MTDs) recognised both in outcrop studies and from offshore margins where they may extend for 100's km. While seismic sections may reveal the large-scale geometry of such features, they fail to capture some of the structural and stratigraphic detail necessary for a fuller understanding of the processes involved. Using the late Pleistocene Lisan Formation sediments exposed around the Dead Sea Basin as our case study, we show that interplay between bed-parallel translational slides and associated normal faults may result in stratigraphic repetition through a process we term ‘slide stacking’. This mechanism, where retrogressive slope failure results in slides cutting across earlier normal faults, produces repeated sequences with older over younger stratigraphic relationships more usually attributed to compressional (thrust) deformation. Slide stacking results in a ∼25% attenuation of the upper sequence above the basal shear surface (BSS), which is itself associated with liquefaction and fluidised sediment. The displaced stratigraphy above the BSS is also marked by sedimentary rafts that are broken into blocks by normal faults and become increasingly separated from one another during downslope translation. The hangingwalls of synthetic listric faults form roll-overs that are progressively tightened towards the underlying BSS to create overturned anticlines that apparently verge upslope. The paradoxical situation therefore arises of contractional geometries, such as older over younger stratigraphic repetition across slides, and upslope-verging recumbent anticlines with locally overturned limbs being created during downslope-directed gravity-driven extension. The downslope margin of the slide stack displays earlier normal faults that created scarps where much of the sedimentary buttress, that would otherwise support the toe of the slide, was removed. Consequently, this leads to predominantly superficial and unrestrained downslope slipping, resulting in very localised contractional geometries that do not balance the overall extension, as in classical gravity-failure models. Localised deformation of the sedimentary sequence that unconformably overlies the slide stack indicates that downslope translation continued after the initial rapid slope failure, suggesting that the entire MTD remained inherently unstable. Slide stacking operates at km scales with stratigraphic repetition governed by the throw of earlier normal faults and the amount of downslope translation.

Interaction between active tectonics, bottom-current processes and coral mounds: A unique example in the NW Moroccan Margin, southern Gulf of Cadiz

The NW Moroccan Margin has a complex geological evolution, being located close to the transition zone between the Azores – Gibraltar Fracture Zone and the western front of the Betic–Rif collisional orogen. The interaction between tectonic, halokinetic and fluid flow processes with bottom-current activity shapes the seafloor and influences the distribution of seafloor biological communities (such as the cold-water coral mounds) and deep-water sedimentation. The aims of this work are to study the interaction of the paleo-oceanographic and morpho-tectonic processes that generated the various seafloor features of the NW Moroccan Margin. To achieve this, high-resolution multibeam bathymetry and parasound data acquired in the “ALBOCA II” cruise have been used, complemented by high-resolution 2D seismic reflection data and the EMODnet bathymetric compilation.Several morphological features were identified in the margin, which are related to different processes of sedimentary (contourites and sediment waves), structural (faults and diapirs), gravitational (slide scars, mass transport deposits), fluid migration (mud volcanoes and pockmarks) and biogenic (exposed and buried coral mounds) nature. The structural features (e.g., strike-slip faults) have a major control on the seafloor morphology and, consequently, on the development and evolution of the sedimentary systems in the study area.The evolution of the NW Moroccan Margin during the late Quaternary has been controlled by climatic variations and tectonic activity. The action of these factors has been dominant in distinct parts of the study area where: i) contourite terraces developed when climatic and oceanographic changes were the prevalent factor, ii) mounded and confined contourite drifts and local mass transport deposits formed when the major control was tectonic activity.

Volcanic Flank Collapse, Secondary Sediment Failure and Flow‐Transition: Multi‐Stage Landslide Emplacement Offshore Montserrat, Lesser Antilles

AbstractVolcanic flank collapses, especially those in island settings, have generated some of the most voluminous mass transport deposits on Earth and can trigger devastating tsunamis. Reliable tsunami hazard assessments for flank collapse‐driven tsunamis require an understanding of the complex emplacement processes involved. The seafloor sequence southeast of Montserrat (Lesser Antilles) is a key site for the study of volcanic flank collapse emplacement processes that span subaerial to submarine environments. Here, we present new 2D and 3D seismic data as well as MeBo drill core data from one of the most extensive mass transport deposits offshore Montserrat, which exemplifies multi‐phase landslide deposition from volcanic islands. The deposits reveal emplacement in multiple stages including two blocky volcanic debris avalanches, secondary seafloor failure and a late‐stage erosive density current that carved channel‐like incisions into the hummocky surface of the deposit about 15 km from the source region. The highly erosive density current potentially originated from downslope‐acceleration of fine‐grained material that was suspended in the water column earlier during the slide. Late‐stage erosive turbidity currents may be a more common process following volcanic sector collapse than has been previously recognized, exerting a potentially important control on the observed deposit morphology as well as on the runout and the overall shape of the deposit.

Identification of Mass Transport Deposits and Insights into Gas Hydrate Accumulation in the Qiongdongnan Sea Area, Northern South China Sea

Identification of Mass Transport Deposits and Insights into Gas Hydrate Accumulation in the Qiongdongnan Sea Area, Northern South China Sea

Representative Dynamic Accumulation of Hydrate-Bearing Sediments in Gas Chimney System since 30 Kyr BP in the QiongDongNan Area, Northern South China Sea

A stratigraphic complex composed of mass transport deposits (MTDs), where the gas occurrence allows for the formation of a gas chimney and pipe structure, is identified based on seismic interpretation in the QiongDongNan area of the northern South China Sea. During the Fifth Gas Hydrate Drilling Expedition of the Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, this type of complex morphology that has close interaction with local gas hydrate (GH) distribution was eventually confirmed. A flow-reaction model is built to explore the spatial–temporal matching evolution process of massive GH reservoirs since 30 kyr before the present (BP). Five time snapshots, including 30, 20, 10, and 5 kyr BP, as well as the present, have been selected to exhibit key strata-evolving information. The results of in situ tensile estimation imply fracturing emergence occurs mostly at 5 kyr BP. Six other environmental scenarios and three cases of paleo-hydrate existence have been compared. The results almost coincide with field GH distribution below the bottom MTD from drilling reports, and state layer fracturing behaviors always feed and probably propagate in shallow sediments. It can be concluded that this complex system with 10% pre-existing hydrates results in the exact distribution and occurrence in local fine-grained silty clay layers adjacent to upper MTDs.

Giant sediment wave fields adjacent to debris-flow filled deep sea valleys: New evidence of cohesive flows transforming into dilute turbidity currents

Sediment waves are subaqueous sedimentary figures belonging to the supercritical flow domain and are of growing interest to the scientific community and industry. They are ubiquitously observed on the seafloor of world's oceans, as well as in the stratigraphic record imaged by marine seismic datasets. In this study we focus on the Cenozoic strata offshore Ivory Coast, where giant sediment waves developed at the base of slope range in height and wavelength: 10–100 m and 1–6 km, respectively. Sediment waves fields in this study developed simultaneously and adjacent to wide, rectilinear valleys, filled by mass-transport deposits. Thus, sediment waves serve as a rare example of large-scale deep-water cyclic steps formed through phase transformation (water entrainment and dilution) of laminar debris flows.The lithological nature of sediment waves can be estimated through the observation of polygonal faulting affecting the sediment waves fields, which suggest a dominant abundance of fine-grained material (clay and silt-prone). This study also shows that wide submarine valleys flanked by sediment waves do not necessarily correspond to sand-prone depositional systems, and that their potential to hold reservoir units for hydrocarbon exploration or CO2 storage should be evaluated with caution when in lower resolution datasets are used.

The role of ice-sheet dynamics in the Miocene-Pliocene depositional systems of the Ross Sea, Antarctica

The dynamics of the Antarctic ice sheet (AIS) have profound implications for the evolution of the Antarctic continental margin, global ocean currents, and climate changes. Marine sediments from the Antarctic continental margins recorded the history of the advance and retreat of the AIS. In this study, we present an integrated analysis of the sedimentary characteristics of the Early Miocene to Late Miocene of the Ross Sea by using 2D seismic reflection data and cores from International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 374 Sites U1521, U1522, and U1524. The characteristics of the seismic facies and sediments show that the expansion and grounding of the ice sheets across the continental shelf significantly influenced the depositional processes, leading to increased glacial erosion, the formation of prograding wedges, mass transport deposits (MTDs), and mixed (turbidite-contourite) depositional systems since the Early Miocene. The seaward migration of the continental shelf edge and the steepening of the continental slope were mainly influenced by the glaciation of extreme expansion of the AIS. Marked increases in the prograding wedge and MTD are associated with extensive sediment reworking and deposition at the grounding zones and along the continental slope as a result of ice sheet expansion. The development of the mixed (turbidite-contourite) depositional systems was the result of extensive sediment reworking and deposition by gravity flows and bottom currents on the continental slope and the rise. This research provides new insights into the complexity of the ice sheet and the sensibility of marginal sediments in responding to the past climate changes in Antarctica.

Contrasting sedimentary and long-lasting geochemical imprints of seismic shaking in a small, groundwater-fed lake basin (Klopeiner See, Eastern European Alps)

In slowly deforming tectonic settings (e.g., European Alps), large earthquakes occur too infrequently to be adequately represented in instrumental and historical records. This leads to uncertainties and inaccuracies of seismic hazard estimations. To extend the seismic record, lacustrine paleoseismologists usually resort to the sedimentary archive of large lakes where earthquakes can be recorded as mass-transport deposits and associated turbidites. The imprint of seismic shaking is generally more subtle and poorly understood in small lakes (<2 km2) with small catchments and therefore such sediment-starved basins are often neglected for paleoseismology. However, these basins might harbour additional information about past earthquakes, thus constituting a valuable supplement to other paleoseismic data. Here, we present the 18 ka-long paleoseismic record of Klopeiner See, a small and rather shallow groundwater-fed lake in the Eastern European Alps. Reflection seismic profiles and sediment cores reveal that several large earthquakes led to extensive mass-wasting in early Late-Glacial times when sedimentation rates were very high (~10 mm/yr). In the Early and Middle Holocene, low sedimentation rates (~0.2-0.5 mm/yr) may have decreased the lake´s sensitivity for recording seismic shaking and no imprints were found for paleo-earthquakes inferred from other records in the region. A short succession of turbidites at ca. 3160 cal BP suggests a burst of strong paleoseismic activity. This may have caused permanent modifications of inflowing ground water systems, archived as a permanent shift in the geochemical signal of the sediment. Such a period of enhanced paleoseismic activity was also inferred from the nearby Lake Wörthersee, but it remains unclear whether these represent the same earthquakes or migrating paleoseismicity. This study highlights the unexpected potential and peculiarities of paleoseismology on small ground-water fed lakes.

Controlling factors of a submarine landslide on the Kumano-nada continental slope, West Japan

Submarine landslide deposits have been recognized in the downslope of a mega-splay fault of the Kumano-nada continental slope. A sediment core was recovered in the mega-splay fault area to find recent slope failures. The youngest mass transport deposit was identified 1.7 m below the seafloor in the study area based on physical properties, radiocarbon dating, and sedimentary and deformation structures. Kinematic analysis of the ductile deformation structure suggests that the mass transport deposit layer came from the steep slope of the hanging wall of the mega-splay fault. This observation agrees with the major scarp collapse being limited mainly to the source area. However, the mega-splay fault in the source area is considered to be currently inactive. Based on the subseafloor structure in the study area, ridge subduction appears to be indirectly destabilizing the slope sediment on the accretionary prism, creating the conditions for submarine landslides on the forearc slope.

A major paleoearthquake in central Canada interpreted from early postglacial subaqueous mass transport deposits

A major paleoearthquake in central Canada interpreted from early postglacial subaqueous mass transport deposits

Numerical Reconstruction of Landslide Paleotsunami Using Geological Records in Alpine Lake Aiguebelette

AbstractMass movements and delta collapses are significant sources of tsunamis in lacustrine environments, impacting human societies enormously. Paleotsunamis studies play an essential role in understanding historical events and their consequences, along with their return periods. This study investigates a paleotsunami induced by a subaqueous mass movement during the Younger Dryas to Early Holocene transition, ca. 11,700 years ago in Lake Aiguebelette (NW Alps, France). Utilizing high‐resolution seismic and bathymetric surveys associated with sedimentological, geochemical, and magnetic analyses, we uncovered a paleotsunami triggered by a seismically induced mass transport deposit. Numerical simulations of mass movement have been conducted using a visco‐plastic Herschel‐Bulkley rheological model and corresponding tsunami wave modeled with dispersive and nondispersive models. Our findings reveal for the first time that dispersive effects may be negligible for subaqueous landslides in a relatively small lake. This research reconstructs a previously unreported paleotsunami event and enhances our understanding of tsunami dynamics in lacustrine environments.

Lower Cretaceous holostratigraphy in Svalbard: the Arctic key piece of the Boreal basin puzzle

Abstract Lower Cretaceous stratigraphy of the high palaeo-latitude Arctic-Boreal Realm is generally more poorly understood than its lower-latitude Tethyan counterpart, prohibiting regional correlations and evaluation of global climate dynamics during this important high- p CO 2 period. In this paper, a holostratigraphic scheme and lithostratigraphic revision are presented for the Valanginian–lower Barremian, siliciclastic ramp succession of the Rurikfjellet Formation in Svalbard, drawn from synthesis of the latest published sedimentological, biostratigraphic, petrophysical, sequence stratigraphic, chemostratigraphic and chronostratigraphic results, supplemented by new measured sections from five localities. The offshore mudstone-dominated Wimanfjellet Member (Valanginian–lower Barremian) is retained, whereas three new members are defined according to their distinct geographical, sedimentological and stratigraphic characteristics. The Adventpynten Member (upper(?) Valanginian–lowermost upper Hauterivian) constitutes a thick, relatively localized succession of mass-transport deposits. The Kikutodden Member (Hauterivian–lower Barremian) is discarded and replaced by the northern Bohemanneset Member and southern Fotografryggen Member, representing respectively: heterogeneous prodelta to delta front deposits; and sandy offshore transition to shoreface deposits. The Rurikfjellet Formation records Valanginian–earliest late Hauterivian shoreline progradation followed by late Hauterivian–early Barremian shoreline retreat and flooding across a low-gradient ramp, which never experienced full regression into continental deposits within the extent of the present-day outcrop belt.

Incorporation of substrate blocks into mass transport deposits: Insights from subsurface and outcrop studies

Incorporation of substrate blocks into mass transport deposits: Insights from subsurface and outcrop studies